2016 Prince Claus Awards presented in Amsterdam

Amsterdam, 15 December 2016

Today in a ceremony at the Royal Palace Amsterdam, HRH Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands presented six Prince Claus Awards for outstanding achievement in the field of culture and development. Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and their Royal Highnesses Princess Laurentien, Princess Beatrix and Princess Mabel of the Netherlands were present, as were Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Lilianne Ploumen.

The Awards Ceremony included a screening of the short film installation, Fireworks by Principal Prince Claus Laureate Apichatpong Weerasethakul, performances by the Syrian musician Kinan Azmeh and artist Kevork Mourad, and speeches by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Honorary Chair of the Board HRH Prince Constantijn, and Minister Lilianne Ploumen.

HRH Prince Constantijn: ‘We need to be challenged; our assumptions questioned, and reexamine what we think we know. We must train ourselves to look through different eyes, different lenses, to understand what’s happening in our world… Amplifying the voices of reason and the expressions of creativity and human ingenuity is more relevant now than ever before, everywhere’

Apichatpong Weerasethakul: ‘We realise more and more the beauty of our differences, and at the same time the atrocities and the prejudices. And there are still many places that remembering and sharing is dangerous. I know because I am from such place. My question is, what do we do to reach out, and communicate with empathy, when that place operates on a different logic?’

About the Prince Claus Awards

The annual Prince Claus Awards honour outstanding achievements in culture and development, particularly in areas where resources or opportunities for cultural expression, creative production and preservation of cultural heritage are limited. All 2016 Prince Claus Laureates will be honoured in their home countries as well in the coming months.

"what do we do to reach out, and communicate with empathy?"

Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Apichatpong Weerasethakul (1970, Thailand), filmmaker and artist

Apichatpong Weerasethakul is an artist and a leader of Thailand’s independent cinema movement. His works subtly address complex social issues and personal politics through mesmerising aesthetics and innovative, non-linear narrative forms. He is also committed to promoting experimental and independent filmmaking in Thailand through his company Kick the Machine Films. Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s work will be exhibited at EYE Film Museum in Amsterdam in September 2017.

Kamal Mouzawak

Kamal Mouzawak (1969, Lebanon), chef and food activist

Kamal Mouzawak is a chef and food activist passionate about sustainable food production and traditions and identity through cuisine and agriculture. Founder of Beirut’s first organic market and the cooperative restaurant, Tawlet (Table), Mouzawak draws on rural communities’ culinary knowledge while raising awareness of the importance of sustainable food through cooking classes, health education and environmental campaigns.

Bahia Shehab

Bahia Shehab combines Islamic art history with contemporary Arab politics and feminist discourse in her art, activism and academic work. By tagging Cairo with calligraphy graffiti during the Arab Spring, creating artworks from reproduced ancient letters, and compiling the first Arabic script encyclopaedia, Shehab uses the past to shed new light on the present and inspires the next generation of academics and graphic designers.

PeaceNiche / The Second Floor (T2F)

PeaceNiche, a not-for-profit organisation founded by Sabeen Mahmud (1974-2015), is an interdisciplinary space that promotes democratic discourse and conflict resolution through intellectual and cultural engagement. Its flagship project T2F is one of the few community spaces for open dialogue; it features a café and bookshop and hosts a packed agenda ranging from writer meet-ups to performing arts to open mic nights.

Vo Trong Nghia

Vo Trong Nghia (1976, Vietnam), architect

Vo Trong Nghia is an architect who is putting sustainable architecture on the map by combining local materials and traditional skills with 21st century design. With a focus on green spaces, his designs range from major urban structures to durable but inexpensive housing for remote communities. His approach to urban design is shaping the future of architecture and transforming Vietnam’s urban landscape. However, at the core of his practice, he uses the physical environment to reconnect humans back to Mother Nature.

La Silla Vacía

La Silla Vacía isan interactive online portal for news and stories that examine the way power is exercised in Colombia. LSV does investigative reporting on subjects others will not touch, setting high standards for Latin American journalism. Its innovative digital approach stimulates civic engagement and generates informed debate around social issues.

awards 2016 speech by Minister Lilianne Ploumen pdf - 0.19 MB

2016 Prince Claus Awards presented in Amsterdam

Amsterdam, 15 December 2016
Today in a ceremony at the Royal Palace Amsterdam, HRH Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands presented six Prince Claus Awards for outstanding achievement in the field of culture and development. Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and their Royal Highnesses Princess Laurentien, Princess Beatrix and Princess Mabel of the Netherlands were...

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2016 Prince Claus Awards presented in Amsterdam

Amsterdam, 15 December 2016
Today in a ceremony at the Royal Palace Amsterdam, HRH Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands presented six Prince Claus Awards for outstanding achievement in the field of culture and development. Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and their Royal Highnesses Princess Laurentien, Princess Beatrix and Princess Mabel of the Netherlands were...